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Canadian hostages freed in covert raid in Iraq
TERRY WEBER
Globe and Mail Update
Three Western aid workers — including two Canadians — kidnapped in Iraq four months ago were freed Thursday in a covert rescue effort mounted by coalition forces in the war-torn nation.
The Iraqi Interior Ministry said the three captives were rescued in a joint operation. The three were Torontonian James Loney, 41; former Montreal resident Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32, and Briton Norman Kember, 74.
A fourth captive, 54-year-old American Tom Fox, was found dead about two weeks ago.
In a brief statement issued by Mr. Kember through the British embassy in Baghdad, he said simply: "It is great to be free. I am looking forward to getting back to the U.K."
News of the release of the three men was met first with disbelief by their families at home, followed by deep elation that they would soon be reunited with their loved ones.
"I thought it was a big dream and then I quickly snapped out of it," Ed Loney, Mr. Loney's brother, told CBC Newsworld from Vancouver after receiving news of the rescue in the early hours of the morning.
"I immediately started to imagine all of the good things that were going to happen."
In a statement issued by the family, they also paid tribute to Mr. Fox and expressed their sympathy over his death.
In New Zealand, where Mr. Sooden's family now lives, the reaction was the same.
"We're a bit numb," Mark Brewer, Mr. Sooden's brother-in-law said. "We're jumping up and down."
The four men, all members of the peace group Christian Peacemakers Teams, were kidnapped at gunpoint in Baghdad on Nov. 26 by a group known as the Swords of Righteousness Brigade.
The group had initially accused the four of spying and threatened to kill them unless all Iraqi detainees were released by the United States. The group had communicated their message through a series of videos released to Arab news channel al-Jazeera.
The most recent had raised concerns, because it depicted only the two Canadians and the Briton but not Mr. Fox. That video was dated late February and was released on March 7.
According to the peace group, Mr. Fox's body was found in Baghdad just days after that tape was made public.
U.S. military officials, speaking for the multinational force, told reporters that the location of the surviving hostages became known early Thursday morning local time. When rescuers swooped in, the captors were not present.
U.S. Major-General Rick Lynch said the location of the three had been learned just hours before the raid from a man captured by U.S. forces. The captives were found in a house located west of Baghdad. They were bound when the multinational forces discovered them, but were otherwise physically sound.
The three men were taken to hospital for a check up. The two Canadians have since been taken to the British embassy in Baghdad.
Few details related to Mr. Fox's death have been released.
At a news conference in Toronto, Christian Peacemakers Teams spokesman Doug Pritchard said no shots were fired during the rescue. Throughout the crisis, the group — which works to promote peace throughout the world — had said it opposed the use of violence to resolve the situation.
"Our hearts are filled with joy today as we heard that Harmeet Singh Sooden, Jim Loney and Norman Kember have been safely released in Baghdad," Mr. Pritchard said, reading from a statement.
"Christian Peacemaker Teams rejoices with their families and friends at the expectation of their return to their loved ones and community."
However, he also called Thursday's developments "bittersweet" in light of Mr. Fox's death.
"We are confident that his spirit is very much present in each reunion," he said.
Mr. Pritchard said the group had no advance knowledge of the operation in Iraq and learned of the rescue only after the men had been freed.
He also credited the outpouring of support from around the world — particularly from Muslim groups — for the safe recovery of the three surviving hostages and renewed the group's call for an end to the U.S.-led military action in Iraq.
"We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by multi-national forces is the root cause of the insecurity of this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq today," he said.
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in London that he was "delighted that now we have a happy ending in this terrible ordeal." He said he had spoken to Mr. Kember's wife, Pat, who was "absolutely delighted, elated at this news."
Mr. Straw said Mr. Kember is in "reasonable condition" in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone.
He also gave few details of the operation, saying only that it followed "weeks and weeks" of planning. He also credited "Canadian personnel" as having played a role, but didn't elaborate.
Mr. Loney, a well-known Toronto community activist, spent many years working on behalf of the homeless.
The Zambian-born Mr. Sooden and came to Canada from England in the early 1990s to study at McGill University and eventually became a Canadian citizen. In April, 2003, he moved to Auckland, where his sister, Preety, lives, to pursue literature studies.
As relatives waited and worried, Christian Peacemaker Teams in Baghdad and elsewhere focused their efforts on trying to let the kidnappers know that they, too, oppose the U.S. and British military presence in Iraq.
The group also gathered supportive statements, especially from Arabs and Muslims leaders around the world, translating everything into Arabic and posting the information on the organization's websites.
On the eve of the Dec. 10 deadline, Ehab Lotayef, an envoy sent to Iraq by the Canadian Islamic Congress, expressed hope the hostages would be released in time for Christmas so they could be with their families.
During prayers in the al-Imam al-Aadam mosque in the predominantly Sunni Arab neighbourhood of Azamiyah in north Baghdad, cleric Ahmed Hassan Taha urged freedom for the captives.
In an unprecedented show of support, residents gathered outside the mosque and held aloft banners demanding their release.
A spokesman for the influential Association of Muslim Scholars, Abdel-Salam al-Qubaisi, said: "I think that those abducted are doves of peace who reject the occupation. They must be rewarded, not imprisoned."
Canadian officials said Ottawa was working with various groups on the ground in a bid to secure the release of Mr. Loney and Mr. Sooden.
Canada has no embassy in Baghdad, and Canadian diplomats are dispatched into Iraq from neighbouring Jordan.
Kidnappers in Iraq have taken at least 235 foreigners hostage and killed nearly 40 over the past two years. Most have been released, although a number are still missing and believed held by their abductors.
Some of the kidnappings have been politically motivated, while others have been criminally inspired with large sums of ransom demanded.
TERRY WEBER
Globe and Mail Update
Three Western aid workers — including two Canadians — kidnapped in Iraq four months ago were freed Thursday in a covert rescue effort mounted by coalition forces in the war-torn nation.
The Iraqi Interior Ministry said the three captives were rescued in a joint operation. The three were Torontonian James Loney, 41; former Montreal resident Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32, and Briton Norman Kember, 74.
A fourth captive, 54-year-old American Tom Fox, was found dead about two weeks ago.
In a brief statement issued by Mr. Kember through the British embassy in Baghdad, he said simply: "It is great to be free. I am looking forward to getting back to the U.K."
News of the release of the three men was met first with disbelief by their families at home, followed by deep elation that they would soon be reunited with their loved ones.
"I thought it was a big dream and then I quickly snapped out of it," Ed Loney, Mr. Loney's brother, told CBC Newsworld from Vancouver after receiving news of the rescue in the early hours of the morning.
"I immediately started to imagine all of the good things that were going to happen."
In a statement issued by the family, they also paid tribute to Mr. Fox and expressed their sympathy over his death.
In New Zealand, where Mr. Sooden's family now lives, the reaction was the same.
"We're a bit numb," Mark Brewer, Mr. Sooden's brother-in-law said. "We're jumping up and down."
The four men, all members of the peace group Christian Peacemakers Teams, were kidnapped at gunpoint in Baghdad on Nov. 26 by a group known as the Swords of Righteousness Brigade.
The group had initially accused the four of spying and threatened to kill them unless all Iraqi detainees were released by the United States. The group had communicated their message through a series of videos released to Arab news channel al-Jazeera.
The most recent had raised concerns, because it depicted only the two Canadians and the Briton but not Mr. Fox. That video was dated late February and was released on March 7.
According to the peace group, Mr. Fox's body was found in Baghdad just days after that tape was made public.
U.S. military officials, speaking for the multinational force, told reporters that the location of the surviving hostages became known early Thursday morning local time. When rescuers swooped in, the captors were not present.
U.S. Major-General Rick Lynch said the location of the three had been learned just hours before the raid from a man captured by U.S. forces. The captives were found in a house located west of Baghdad. They were bound when the multinational forces discovered them, but were otherwise physically sound.
The three men were taken to hospital for a check up. The two Canadians have since been taken to the British embassy in Baghdad.
Few details related to Mr. Fox's death have been released.
At a news conference in Toronto, Christian Peacemakers Teams spokesman Doug Pritchard said no shots were fired during the rescue. Throughout the crisis, the group — which works to promote peace throughout the world — had said it opposed the use of violence to resolve the situation.
"Our hearts are filled with joy today as we heard that Harmeet Singh Sooden, Jim Loney and Norman Kember have been safely released in Baghdad," Mr. Pritchard said, reading from a statement.
"Christian Peacemaker Teams rejoices with their families and friends at the expectation of their return to their loved ones and community."
However, he also called Thursday's developments "bittersweet" in light of Mr. Fox's death.
"We are confident that his spirit is very much present in each reunion," he said.
Mr. Pritchard said the group had no advance knowledge of the operation in Iraq and learned of the rescue only after the men had been freed.
He also credited the outpouring of support from around the world — particularly from Muslim groups — for the safe recovery of the three surviving hostages and renewed the group's call for an end to the U.S.-led military action in Iraq.
"We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by multi-national forces is the root cause of the insecurity of this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq today," he said.
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in London that he was "delighted that now we have a happy ending in this terrible ordeal." He said he had spoken to Mr. Kember's wife, Pat, who was "absolutely delighted, elated at this news."
Mr. Straw said Mr. Kember is in "reasonable condition" in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone.
He also gave few details of the operation, saying only that it followed "weeks and weeks" of planning. He also credited "Canadian personnel" as having played a role, but didn't elaborate.
Mr. Loney, a well-known Toronto community activist, spent many years working on behalf of the homeless.
The Zambian-born Mr. Sooden and came to Canada from England in the early 1990s to study at McGill University and eventually became a Canadian citizen. In April, 2003, he moved to Auckland, where his sister, Preety, lives, to pursue literature studies.
As relatives waited and worried, Christian Peacemaker Teams in Baghdad and elsewhere focused their efforts on trying to let the kidnappers know that they, too, oppose the U.S. and British military presence in Iraq.
The group also gathered supportive statements, especially from Arabs and Muslims leaders around the world, translating everything into Arabic and posting the information on the organization's websites.
On the eve of the Dec. 10 deadline, Ehab Lotayef, an envoy sent to Iraq by the Canadian Islamic Congress, expressed hope the hostages would be released in time for Christmas so they could be with their families.
During prayers in the al-Imam al-Aadam mosque in the predominantly Sunni Arab neighbourhood of Azamiyah in north Baghdad, cleric Ahmed Hassan Taha urged freedom for the captives.
In an unprecedented show of support, residents gathered outside the mosque and held aloft banners demanding their release.
A spokesman for the influential Association of Muslim Scholars, Abdel-Salam al-Qubaisi, said: "I think that those abducted are doves of peace who reject the occupation. They must be rewarded, not imprisoned."
Canadian officials said Ottawa was working with various groups on the ground in a bid to secure the release of Mr. Loney and Mr. Sooden.
Canada has no embassy in Baghdad, and Canadian diplomats are dispatched into Iraq from neighbouring Jordan.
Kidnappers in Iraq have taken at least 235 foreigners hostage and killed nearly 40 over the past two years. Most have been released, although a number are still missing and believed held by their abductors.
Some of the kidnappings have been politically motivated, while others have been criminally inspired with large sums of ransom demanded.
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